Some Havanese will
change in the first few months of age and others will change again later in
life. We want to help you in this sometimes
confusing and frustrating endeavor of choosing the right color and markings of your Kid, so we have compiled a listing for you of the
Havanese colors and markings as recognized by AKC. We hope this helps you in determining the
proper color and markings of your Kid. The colors and markings are both intriguing and fun to explore and ever
changing as the Havanese grow. When selecting a
color for an AKC registration, keep in mind that AKC would like Havanese to be
listed with the color of the anticipated adult coat. Since most puppies
are registered at a young age, it may be difficult to select the most fitting
color. Many colors lighten in the first few years, and may darken again later
or be affected by an unexpected gene, you can only make the best educated guess
possible.

Colors:

Black

Standard

AKC Code: 007

A solid deep jet black with a glossy appearance.No reddish or brown tones and this color
will not lighten.

Black & Silver

Standard

AKC Code: 016

A very specific layout
of dark and light coat. Predominantly
dark black coat overlaid with a silver color point pattern. Color points are
laid out in the following pattern; lighter markings appear on the muzzle,
eyebrows, underside of ears, cheeks, legs, chest and vent.Color points may be any shade of silver.Points that start out as shades of tan
often lighten to shades of silver or creamy white as the dog matures.These points will be seen without white
trim. With white trim is the Silver
Points (135) marking.

Black & Tan

Standard

AKC Code: 018

A very specific layout
of dark and light coat. Predominantly
dark black coat overlaid with a tan or gold color point pattern. Color points
are laid out in the following pattern; lighter markings appear on the muzzle,
eyebrows, underside of ears, cheeks, legs, chest and vent.Color points may be any shade of tan or
gold.These points will be seen
without white trim. With white trim is the Tan Points (029) marking.

Blue

Standard

AKC Code: 037

Puppies are born black
or so dark that they appear black.The
black is dull rather than glossy like a true black and may have a dark
reddish cast.The coat may start
turning as early as 6 to 8 months or as late as 3 to 5 years.Once it starts turning, the coat color will
continue to develop until it takes a definite blue cast.The in between color is often a muddy brown
or reddish color.Final blue color may
be any shade from medium to dark silver/gray/blue and charcoal.Do not get this confused with Silver
(176)as the Silver color dog is the
lighter silver/grey shades while the Blue dog is the darker charcoal/blue
shades.A Blue dog will remain black up to 6-8 months or longer and then start turning towards the
silvery blue color later in life.

BlueCharcoal Blue

Chocolate

Standard

AKC Code:071

A Chocolate dog will be
born chocolate.A true chocolate will
have liver or brown pigment, no black, on the nose, lips, and eye rims.They may also have lighter brown, amber, or
golden eyes.Chocolate coats can vary
from milk chocolate to a darker chocolate color and some may turn
silver.Chocolate refers to the coat
color and the pigment color.

Lighter ChocolateDarker Chocolate

Chocolate Silver

Cream

Standard

AKC Code:076

Ivory or creamy
yellowish white like dairy cream or almonds, or a pale tawny yellow like
champagne.The color may be from light
to deep intensity with yellow undertones.

Fawn

Standard

AKC Code:082

A cool color ranging
from tan, beige and buff to light brown shades.

Fawn BeigeFawn Tan

Gold

Standard

AKC Code:091

A rich warm color in
various shades of medium gold from honey to apricot with definite reddish
highlights to the coat.True Gold dogs
retain much of their color throughout their lifetime, though the color may
soften with age.

GoldApricot

Red

Standard

AKC Code:140

A rich warm color
similar to gold with deeper and more intense color, ranging from orange red
to deep mahogany.

Silver

Standard

AKC Code:176

Puppies are born black
and start to lighten at about 4 to 6 weeks of age.The coat will start turning silver at the
roots and the color change will usually begin on the face and head.As the dog matures the coat will lighten to
varying shades of silver from pale platinum, sterling, and pewter to deep
grey.The coat change is complete at
12 to 15 months of age.Do not get
this confused with Blue (037) as the Silver color dog is the lighter
silver/grey shades while the Blue dog is the darker charcoal/blue shades.

SilverSilver Grey

White

Standard

AKC Code:199

Pure crisp, bright,
snow white from birth, no color allowed on any part of the dog including the
ears.

Brindle

Brindle is one of the
more complex coat colors and much confusion surrounds the brindle
markings.The classic brindle
combination gives dark bands, more or less regular tiger striped on a lighter
background any shade of cream, champagne, tan, gold, or silver.Tiger stripes are apparent at birth and may
run all over the body in streaks or stripes of black or brown.The color of each hair must go from root to
tip.Not all brindles have this
classic striped look; some have the agouti markings where the hairs are
banded in rings of color like rabbit or wolf fur.There can be three or more rings of
color.Brindle may also appear as a
combination coat where two or more different color hairs are mixed throughout
giving a more subtle look.Black,
brown and auburn hairs intermixed which make a dog look like drying tobacco
all over, is known as Havana brown or Black Brindle (279).A
brindle can also be a blend of the agouti hair along with intermixed solid
hairs.The base color may lighten as
the dog matures but the overall pattern will remain.Some lighten and then darken again.Some Brindles may have a dark mask on the
face and may have black ears and tail or a dark dorsal stripe.

BrindleAgouti

THE FOLLOWING ARE A
COMBINATION OF THE COLOR AND THE BRINDLE AFFECT.

Black Brindle

Standard

AKC Code:279

Blue Brindle

Standard

AKC Code:056

Gold Brindle

Standard

AKC Code:485

Red Brindle

Standard

AKC Code:148

Silver Brindle

Standard

AKC Code:303

Black & Silver
Brindle

Alternate

AKC Code:488

Black & Tan
Brindle

Alternate

AKC Code:487

Chocolate Brindle

Alternate

AKC Code:342

Fawn Brindle

Alternate

AKC Code:088

Sable

Sable coats are distinguished by
darker tipping on a lighter colored under-hair. The amount of tipping may be
very heavy or very light. The under-hair can be gold, red, fawn, chocolate or
silver. Tipping is generally black but may also be darker shades of brown,
gold or silver. Each hair will be variegated from root to tip. Sable coats
often lighten or progressively silver as the dog matures. Some Sable dogs
lighten dramatically almost all the way to a pale Ivory or off-white leaving
just subtle shadings and highlights of color. A true Sable will always retain
the dark tipping on the ears and tail even if it is just a few hairs. Sable
is the most changeable of all the Havanese colors. The degree of silvering is
dependent on the other colors in the genetic makeup of the dog. If the
tipping is cut off, generally it will not return except perhaps on the ears
and tail.

Sable

THE FOLLOWING ARE A
COMBINATION OF THE COLOR AND THE SABLE AFFECT.

Gold Sable

Standard

AKC Code:486

Red Sable

Standard

AKC Code:155

Chocolate Sable

Alternate

AKC Code:350

Fawn Sable

Alternate

AKC Code:338

Silver Sable

Alternate

AKC Code:286

Markings:

Cream Markings

Standard

AKC Code: 044

A predominantly one colored coat with small patches of cream
trim found on the chin, chest and feet.

Irish Pied

Standard

AKC Code: 075

Two color coat with
over 50% of the coat being any color other than white. With specific coat
pattern as follows; The underbelly and lower legs at least up to the elbows,
and tail tip are white. There is also white on the chest up to the bottom of
the chin, and a full or partial white collar or shawl around the neck. There
may be a colored mask on the face. The coloring on the back appears as a
large saddle or cape covering the shoulders, back and sides.The topline is colored while the underline
is always white.

Parti Belton

Standard

AKC Code: 136

Many Havanese carry the
TICKING gene. A Parti-Color dog with this gene will have flecks of color
throughout the white coat, giving it a salt and pepper appearance. Dogs
without this gene will have a white that stays crisp and pure. The ticking
will only be in the area of the white part of the coat.

Parti-Color

Standard

AKC Code: 038

PARTI-COLOR - Coat is over
50% white, broken with irregular patches or spots of a second color. These patches may be any other color.

EXTREME Parti - Lightly
marked dogs with less than 10% color are called extreme Parti. An example
might be a white dog with one or both ears partly colored and no colored
patches on the body.

Parti-ColorExtreme Partii

Silver Markings

Standard

AKC Code: 034

A predominantly one colored
coat with small patches of silver trim found on the chin, chest and feet.

Silver Points

Standard

AKC Code: 135

A very specific layout
of dark and light coat. Predominantly dark coat overlaid with a lighter color
point pattern. The most common background coat color is black; it may also be
Sable, Blue, Silver or Chocolate. Color points are laid out in the following
pattern; lighter markings appear on the muzzle, eyebrows, underside of ears,
cheeks, legs, chest and vent.Color
points may be any shade of silver.Points
that start out as shades of tan often lighten to shades of silver or creamy
white as the dog matures.These points
will be seen with white trim. Silver Points, without any white trim at all,
is known as the Black and Silver (016) color.

Tan Points

Standard

AKC Code: 029

A very specific layout
of dark and light coat. Predominantly dark coat overlaid with a lighter color
point pattern. The most common background coat color is black; it may also be
Sable, Blue, Silver or Chocolate.Color
points are laid out in the following pattern; lighter markings appear on the
muzzle, eyebrows, underside of ears, cheeks, legs, chest and vent.Color points may be any shade of tan or
gold. These points will be seen with white trim.The classic black coat with Tan Points,
without any white trim at all, is known as the Black and Tan (018) color.

White Markings

Standard

AKC Code: 014

A predominantly one colored
coat with small patches of white trim often found on the chin, chest and feet.

Variant Genes:

Variant genes that could affect the color of the Havanese. These are not part of the AKC Colors or Markings but will be helpful in determining your Havanese color and markings.

Silvering Gene

The majority of Havanese carry this gene to some degree. This gene is responsible for colors that progressively silver and lighten as the dog matures, much like prematurely greying hair in humans. In the Havanese, this premature greying may start soon after birth. Some color changes can be quite dramatic going from a
very dark puppy coat to a pale cream or champagne adult coat.

Chinchilla Gene

This gene masks the color red and does not allow it to fully develop. This is most noticeable on Tan Point dogs and is responsible for the points appearing silver rather than tan. This causes some confusion as a number of Tan Point dogs, as adults, have no visible tan on them at all. Depending on the intensity of the gene, the points can be as dark as pewter or as light as
pale platinum. Tan Points may lighten and then darken again with maturity.

Saddle Gene

Some Havanese carry a SADDLE gene. This is usually a puppy born black with tan/silver points, where the coat color starts fading from the front towards the back, stopping around the shoulder area, leaving the front, face, head and neck lighter and the shoulders, back and rear darker.

Ticking Gene

A parti colored dog with this gene will have flecks of color throughout the white coat, giving it a salt and pepper appearance. Also known as Parti Belton (136).

On/Off Gene

This gene is responsible for turning other modifiers on and off possibly playing a role in dogs who lighten dramatically and then deepen again as they mature.

Remember that
although the colors listed on AKC pedigrees may not reflect the most accurate color description of the Kid, consider it
one of the fascinating qualities of this
wonderful breed!